World No. 2 Rafael Nadal recently faced a humiliating defeat at the quarter-finals of the Italian Open 2020.

In the post-match press conference, Nadal was asked about how he would recover and prepare for the French Open 2020 in such a short time and if he had talked to his team about this. Nadal seemed a little uncertain with his reply. “No. (This) Is a completely special year and unpredictable year. I don’t know. I probably go back home and then let’s see what’s going on,” said the 19-time Grand Slam champion.

Many fans were predicting a Novak Djokovic v Rafael Nadal final. While the former managed to reach the finals, the Nadal’s dream of lifting his 10th Italian Open title was shattered. It was the young Argentine Diego Schwartzman who secured over a win against the Spaniard. What was worse for Nadal was that he lost to Schwartzman in straight sets 2-6 and 5-7 on the clay-a surface on which he is believed to be the best.

Rafael Nadal looking forward to fix his service

“I did a couple of things well and other things bad. And that’s it. At least I played three matches. I fighted until the end. But losing that many serves, you can’t expect to win a match, no? Something that I have to fix,” said the 34-year-old Spanish legend.

The Spaniard showed some sort of optimism. He was happy about the fact that he got to play three matches before the French Open 2020 and admitted that he needed to work on his serves.

In the previous nine meetings between the two players, Nadal was able to get through Schwartzman on all occasions. This was the first incident in 10 meetings that the World No. 2 lost to the Argentine.

“I know how to do it. I gonna keep working and keep practicing with the right attitude and try to give me a chance to be ready,” concluded Nadal.

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Rafael Nadal holds the record for winning the French Open title 12 times, the most by any single player. But in the past 12 years, Nadal hasn’t won at the French Open till he won a tournament on clay. There is no skepticism about his phenomenal gameplay on the clay courts.

Numbers do reveal something, if not everything. Nadal didn’t look comfortable at the Italian Open 2020. Will he be able to defend his French Open title this time and turn the odds in his favor? This question is yet to be answered.